Johanna Learns to Drive . . .

(...on an antique fire truck simulator at the Fire Fighter's Museum in Dallas - July 2002)

by Julia

Finally.

After working on this off and on for two months, I’m done! Part of the delay was that I just wasn’t satisfied with the facial expression. I still am not satisfied. It’s not "cheesy" enough. I managed to capture the "cheesy" better in a study I did. (See the sketch below. Sorry about the quality - I had to enhance the sketch because it was too lightly drawn.) I got the left eye and mouth right. It actually looks like our dear 4-year-old Johanna.

The finished portrait is a 100% enlargement from a 3x5 photo. (I used the grid-transfer method.) I had originally tried to draw it the same size as the photo. (See sketch at below left.) When it came time to do the face, it looked like a cute little girl, but in no way resembled a particular cute little girl named Johanna Ruth Kautt. No matter how much I sharpened it, the pencil tip was simply too wide – no room for error. Now I understand why some portrait artists prefer a larger format - even life-size - when trying to render a likeness. It’s easier to get the lines in the right place to capture the personality. I’m tempted to do a 400% enlargement of this – at least the face, - so I can get it right. It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun, as well! I gave it to Johanna as a late birthday gift. Belated "Happy Birthday!" dear JoRudy.

Pictures of Jaden

I wanted to post these two pictures of Jaden when he was a baby. Both of them were taken when he was only a few months old. Don't you think he's so cute?! :)

This is one of the best pictures of Jaden, I think. :)

"Keep your hands out of the cookie jar!"

Answering Darwin Conference - Part 2

Saturday: I let Abby go Saturday night, and stayed home with mom. So...I don't really know what happened that night, seeing that I wasn't there. A video presentation entitled: "A God of Suffering?", by Dr. Tommy Mitchell, was shown. This video presentation is great. Dr. Mitchell explains how there can be a God of Love in this world of death and suffering. Here are some more pictures from Friday & Saturday night:

Mischievous? Hannah & Phoebe (no not me! a different Phoebe!) :)

Isn't Ezra so cute?! :)

People...talking! :)

More talking!

Our mysterious visitor from Oklahoma was... Mr. Larry Amos (our former neighbor). More later.

Answering Darwin Conference - Part 1

Friday night started off good. Fifteen minutes before it was supposed to start, only a few people were there. But...about five minutes before a surge of people came and we had almost forty people! (Remember, this was our FIRST conference, ever!) Friday night we had a video presentation by Dr. Terry Mortenson, entitled "Origin of the Species: Was Darwin Right?" A very good presentation. We had great fellowship afterward, with snacks. That night we were at the church until 10:30! (We were talking, of course!) But, we were satisfied with the results so far. All praise goes to the LORD!


The door to the children's room

NOTE: our internet connection is not doing so well right now, so whenever it works better I'll be posting more pictures from the conference.

Answering Darwin Conference

Well...I think that the Answering Darwin Conference was a success. On Friday night & Saturday night we had over 30 in attendance (which doesn't sound much, but it is for a small church, and a first time "experiment" conference). On Sunday morning, with Dr. Jobe Martin as our guess, we had over 50 in attendance. Sunday evening we had just under 30. I had hoped we would have had more, but again, I think it was a success.

Anyway, we I get a chance, I hope to post pictures, and a little bit more about the conference. Maybe sometime in the next...month! No, just kidding. Hopefully in the next couple of days. :)

Also, we had a special visitor (from Oklahoma). Can anyone guess who it was?

Flowers!

In the past week or so, our daffodils have bloomed! They are so beautiful!

Come What May

So, last night we watched Come What May, the amazing movie about Caleb and Rachel and their struggle to make a reasonable case infront of their moot court about overturning Roe v. Wade.

I thought that the music, filming and location were all very excellent, the acting and the transitions between each scene, were a little rough. Over all though, I was really touched by the messages sent in this first feature film for Advent Film Group.

You can watch the trailer here, and if you want more info about AFG, you can log onto their site.

A study ~

"Singing to the LORD" By Johanna R. Kautt, age: 11
Here is a study I started a several weeks. It is very interesting.
"I will sing to the LORD…" Exodus 15:1b
"Sing to the LORD…" Exodus 15:21b
"Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes! I, even I, will sing to the LORD; I will sing praise to the LORD God of Israel." Judges 5:3
"Therefore I will give thanks to You, O LORD, among the Gentiles, And sing praises to Your name." 2 Samuel 22:50
"Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works!" 1 Chronicles 16:9
"Sing to the LORD, all the earth; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day." 1 Chronicles 16:23
"Now when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had some against Judah; and they were defeated." 2 Chronicles 20:22
"Moreover King Hezekiah and the leaders commanded the Levites to sing praise to the LORD, with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. So they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshiped." 2 Chronicles 29:30
"I will praise the LORD according to His righteousness, And will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High." Psalm 7:17
"I will sing praise to Your name…" Psalm 9:2a
"Sing praise to the LORD…" Psalm 9:11a
"I will sing to the LORD…" Psalm 13:6a
"…And sing praises to Your name." Psalm 18:49b
"…We will sing and praise Your power." Psalm 21:13b
"And now my head shall be lifted up above me enemies all around me; Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD." Psalm 27:6
"Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of His..," Psalm 30:4a
"Sing to Him a new song…" Psalm 33:3a
"He has put a new song in my mouth—praise to our God..." Psalm 40:3b
"…And in the night His song is with me…" Psalm 42:8b
"6 Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises! 7 For God is the King of all the earth; Sing praises with understanding." Psalm 47:6,7
"Deliver me from the guilt of bloodshed, O God, The God of my salvation, And my tongue shall sing aloud of your righteousness." Psalm 51: 14
"My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise." Psalm 57:7
"I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing to You among nations." Psalm 57:9
"16 But I will sing of Your power; Yes, I will sing aloud of Your mercy in the morning; For You have been my defense And refuge in the day of my trouble. 17 To You, O my Strength, I will sing praises; For God is my defense, My God of mercy." Psalm 59:16,17
"So I will sing praise to Your name forever, That I may daily perform my vows." Psalm 61:8
"Sing to the honor of His name; Make His praise glorious." Psalm 66:2
"All the earth shall worship You, And sing praises to You; They shall sing praises to Your name. Selah" Psalm 66:4
"Oh, let the nations be glad and sing for joy! For You shall judge the people righteously, And govern the nations on earth. Selah" Psalm 67:4
"Sing to God, sing praises to His name; Extol Him who rides on the clouds, By his name YAH, And rejoice before Him." Psalm 68:4
"Sing to God; you kingdoms of the earth; Oh, sing praises to the Lord, Selah" Psalm 68:32
"Also with lute I will praise You—And Your faithfulness, O my God! To You I will sing with the harp, O Holy One of Israel." Psalm 71:22
"But I will declare forever, I will sing praises to the God of Jacob." Psalm 75:9
"Sing aloud to God our strength; Make a joyful shout to the God of Jacob." Psalm 81:1
"I will sing of the mercies of the LORD forever…" Psalm 89:1a
"It is good to give thanks to the LORD, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High." Psalm 92:1
"Oh come, let us sing to the LORD! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation." Psalm 95:1
"Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! Sing to the LORD, all the earth. 2 Sing to the LORD, bless His name; proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day." Psalm 96: 1,2
"Oh, sing to the LORD a new song! For He has done marvelous things…" Psalm 98:1a
"Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises." Psalm 98:4b
"Sing to the LORD with the harp and the sound of the psalm…" Psalm 98:5
"Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands! 2 Serve the LORD with gladness; come before His presence with singing." Psalm 100:1,2
"I will sing of the mercy and justice; to You, O LORD, I will sing praises." Psalm 101:1
"I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have my being." Psalm 104:33
"Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him…" Psalm 105:2a
"O GOD, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise, even with my glory." Psalm 108:1
"I will praise You, O LORD, among the peoples, And I will sing praises to You among the nations." Psalm 108:3
"Praise the LORD, for the LORD if good; Sing praises to His name, for it is pleasant." Psalm 135:3
"For there those who carried us away captive asked of us a song, And those who plundered us requested mirth, Saying, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!" 4 How shall we sing the LORD’s song In a foreign land?" Psalm 137: 3,4
"I will praise You with my whole heart; Before the gods I will sing praises to You." Psalm 138:1
"Yes, they shall sing of the ways of the LORD, For great is the glory of the LORD." Psalm 138:5
"I will sing a new song to You, O God; On the harp of ten strings I will sing praises to You," Psalm 144:9
"They shall utter the memory of Your great goodness, And shall sing of Your righteousness." Psalm 145:7
"While I live I will praise the LORD; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being." Psalm 146:2
"Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; For it is pleasant, and praise is beautiful." Psalm 147:1
"Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; Sing praises on the harp to our God," Psalm 147:7
"Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, And His praise in the assembly of the saints." Psalm 149:1
"Let them praise His name with the dance; Let them sing praises to Him with the timbrel and harp." Psalm 149:3
"5 Let the saints be joyful in glory; Let them sing aloud on their beds. 6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth…" Psalm 149:5,6a
"By transgression an evil man is snared, But the righteous sings and rejoices." Proverbs 29:6
"Now let me sing to my Well-beloved a song of my Beloved regarding His vineyard…" Isaiah 5:1a
"Sing to the LORD, For He has done excellent things; This is know in all the earth." Isaiah 12:5
"They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing; For the majesty of the LORD they shall cry aloud from the sea." Isaiah 24:14
"Sing unto the LORD a new song, And His praise from the ends of the earth…" Isaiah 42:10a
"Sing, O heavens, for the LORD has done it! Shout, you lower parts of the earth; Break forth into singing, you mountains, O forest, and every tree in it! For the LORD has redeemed Jacob, And glorified Himself in Israel." Isaiah 44:23
"Sing, O heavens! Be joyful, O earth! And break forth in singing, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted His people, And will have mercy on His afflicted." Isaiah 49:13
"8 Your watchmen shall lift up their voices, With their voices they shall sing together; For they shall see eye to eye when the LORD brings back Zion. 9 Break forth into joy, sing together, You waste places of Jerusalem! For the LORD has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem." Isaiah 52:8,9
"Sing, O barren, You who have not borne! Break forth into singing, and cry aloud, You who have not labored with child! For more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married woman," says the LORD." Isaiah 54:1
"Behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart, But you shall cry for sorrow of heart, And wail for grief of spirit." Isaiah 65:14
"Sing to the LORD! Praise the LORD! For He has delivered the life of the poor from the hand of the evildoers." Jeremiah 20:13
"For thus says the LORD: "Sing with gladness for Jacob, And shout among the chief of the nations; Proclaim, give praise, and say, ‘O, LORD, save Your people, The remnant of Israel!’" Jeremiah 31:7
"Therefore they shall come and sing on the height of Zion, Streaming to the goodness of the LORD—For wheat and new wine and oil, For the young of the flock and the herd; Their souls shall be like the well-watered garden, And they shall sorrow no more at all." Jeremiah 31:12
"Sing, O daughter of Zion! Shout, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!" Zephaniah 3:14
"Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion! For behold, I am coming and I will dwell in your midst," says the LORD." Zechariah 2:10

As you can see, there are many, many, many passages about "Singing to the LORD" in just the Old Testament! ;-) Here are two from the New Testament:
"Speaking to one another in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs and singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord…" Eph. 5:19
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord." Col. 3:16
(NKJV used)

Guessing game - **with a PRIZE**

The guessing game has now ended. Congratulations to the winners: Aunt Jill, Stefon, Camille & Hannah! Thanks for all of the wonderful guesses!

For all the blog readers of Texas Skies, here is a little guessing game for you to enjoy. And...there is a *PRIZE*, so make sure to guess. Now...for some of you it might be very easy, for others it might not be so easy. To guess click on "comment" at the end of the post.

You have to figure out who this is in this pencil drawing by Mom:

Rules:

- When guessing, you must state your choice of prize...if you are the winner.

- If you are the winner, then please send us your address by way of email.

- Once we have your address, we will send a high-quality photo copy of your prize out as soon as possible (by way of snail-mail).

The prize is your choice of one (1) of following pieces of art: (all of the pieces of art are done by Julia Kautt)

Colored Pencil:

Black eyed Susan


Three Sisters

Pencil:

Taken from a photo of me (Phoebe) when I was a toddler

Watercolor:

Shepherds Staff

Black eyed Susan

African Violets

Purple Peppers

Pepper No. 2

Bookmarks (paper, laminated): green, purple and blue.

Snowy days! (part two)

Here is some more pictures of the ice storm we got! Enjoy! ;-) (Sorry it's so late!)

A frozen chair

Our next door neighbors' house

Looking down our ally

The playhouse's stove that was frozen! :-)

The water coming out of the pipe froze.

Well, I'd better go!

~Jo

** Heads Up!! **

I just wanted everyone to have a *** HEADS UP ***! Tomorrow, February 5th (hint, that's a clue), (Lord willing) we are going to have a guessing game, ***with a prize***. Be sure to leave your guess (by clicking comments at the end of this post) and make sure to mark who you are on your guess. Tomorrow, to extend your suspense, we will announce what the prize is!! Be sure to check it out!! Hint, hint: "art". :)

Looking forward to the guessing game!!

Answering Darwin Conference

The David Kautt Family, CET Ministries & Northwest Christian Church, is pleased to present:

Answering Darwin Conference

Few men in history have influenced cultural thinking as much as
Charles Darwin...
His life is being celebrated this year...
But is his legacy worth honoring?

Is the theory of evolution good science?
Is it Biblical?
Come hear Biblical, logical and scientific answers to Charles Darwin's theories regarding evolution. Hear the Biblical and scientific truth about evolution!

Information:
- Friday February 13 - 7:00 pm -
“ORIGIN OF THE SPECIES: WAS DARWIN RIGHT?”*
video presentation by Dr. Terry Mortenson (refreshments provided)

- Saturday February 14 – 7:00 pm -
“A GOD OF SUFFERING? DEATH, DISEASE... WHY?”*
video presentation by Dr. Tommy Mitchell (refreshments provided)

- Sunday February 15 – 10:00 am & 11:00 am -
Our guest will be former evolutionist &
skeptic Dr. Jobe Martin of Biblical Discipleship Ministries, author of Evolution of a Creationist, and host of the INCREDIBLE CREATURES THAT DEFY EVOLUTION documentary series.*

Dr. Jobe Martin & his wife, Jenna Dee.

- Sunday February 15 – 6:00 pm -
“CREATION: SCIENCE CONFIRMS THE BIBLE IS TRUE”*
video presentation by Dr. Jason Lisle (refreshments provided)

*A children's track, featuring age appropriate video presentations will be available during all sessions, for those interested. Titles to be shown will include “INCREDIBLE CREATURES THAT DEFY EVOLUTION” Volumes I - III by Dr. Jobe Martin and “DINOSAURS, GENESIS AND THE GOSPEL” by Ken Ham & Buddy Davis

For more info: (214) 578 – 8161 or (972) 542 - 6211

Northwest Christian Church
1513 N. Bradley St. McKinney, TX

Natural Selection: Of Darwinian Origins? A Portrait of Edward Blyth's work in the 1800s

Natural Selection: Of Darwinian Origins? A Portrait of Edward Blyth's work in the 1800s. - By Abby Kautt

In the beginning God created different species capable of producing variations within their kind. After the worldwide flood of Noah's day (see Genesis 6-9), and the dispersion of the surviving animals across the newly re-organized earth; the animals now smaller in number continued reproducing according to their kind. Changes occurred over the centuries, some for the betterment of that kind, some to the devastation of others.

Now, you must understand that Natural selection is not evolutionary in its origins, but simply a scientific fact of creation. Small changes happening over time; think of dogs and the vast distinctives between the different types.

You have large dogs like the Great Dane, Greyhounds, German Shepherds and others, and then you have small dogs like the Chihuahua or Pomeranian with many in between these extremes. Evolutionists want us to believe that natural selection (which does happen) leads to whole new categories of creatures, which is simply untrue. Dogs can only produce dogs, cats only cats, and so on.

Even though Charles Darwin popularized the notion of “Natural selection” and thus made it a Darwinian idea, it was in fact another scientist in England some 23 years1 before who advocated this concept.

Edward Blyth was born in 1810 in London, England. He was a chemist, zoologist, and later became the curator of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, in Calcutta, India.2

Unlike Darwin, Blyth did not believe in evolution, in fact here is what he had to say on the issue of the common descent of man from apes. ". . . every species is essentially distinct and separate from every other species; otherwise it would not be a species but a variety. The most similar species, therefore, are only allied to each other in consequence of the resemblance of their general organization.”3

He realized that it was God, and not evolutionary processes that had it's finger print on creation. He went so far as to exclaim, "Then, and with humble reverence, let the mighty acts of Supreme Omnipotence be spoken of, it may be that the eternal and ever glorious Being which willed matter into existence shall pronounce on it the final doom of annihilation . . . Or, what is more probable, to judge from the universal benevolence of all that is within our grasp, it's elements shall again be called forth into light and life, and blaze forth the recommencement of the same system.”4

In an age where so many scientists were abandoning the idea of a Creator, here was one who not only believed in but articulated arguments that supported the idea of a Creator, God.

Blyth spent much of his time as a scientist studying birds. As the curator of the Royal Asiatic Society of Bengal, he published a Catalogue of the Birds of the Asiatic Society in 1849.5 There a several species named for him such as the Blyth's Hawk-eagle6 among others. He was a prolific writer, and published a couple of books along with his Magazine of Natural History and The Natural History of Cranes.7 He fell into poor health later in his life and was forced to return to his native England where he died in December of 1873. Edward Blyth's work with birds and as a zoologist in general reminds me of these verses:
“20 And God said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens.” 21 So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.” - Genesis 1:20-21 ESV

___________________________________________
1 E. Blyth, Magazine of Natural History, 1835-1837 – The Darwin papers, Ch. 2, vol. 1, num. II
2 The Asiatic Society was founded in 1784, by Sir William Jones in Kolkata, India. It was set up to enhance and further the cause of Oriental research. Absolute Astronomy
3 E. Blyth, On the Psychological Distinctions between Man and Animals, Magazine of Natural History – The Darwin Papers, Ch. 2, vol. 1, num. II
4 Edward Blyth, On the Psychological Distinctions between Man and Animals, Magazine of Natural History, Vol. 1,1837. The Darwin Papers – Ch. 2, vol. 1, num. II
5AbsoluteAstronomy.com – Blyth facts
6 Blyth's Hawk-eagle found in the Malay Peninsula, Sumatra, Borneo and Singapore. NationMaster.com/encyclopedia
7The Natural History of the Cranes was published in 1881 – AbsoluteAstronomy.com – Blyth facts

Happenings lately ~ Part 1

Here are some pictures from lately:

On Thursday afternoon Abby, Caleb, Johanna, Jaden & I handed out approx. 100 flyers for our Answering Darwin Conference.


More walking!! :)

Who is this?! (smile) :)

What have we here? For the past several days (actually weeks) us kids have been preparing our backyard to plant a garden. Today (a perfect day to work outdoors, it was in the low 70's!) we ripped up 5 bushes that along the fence (see the picture above), so that we can have that much more dirt to plant fruit bearing plants.

Here is how big the pile of limbs from the 5 bushes was. I (Phoebe) was the one who chopped all of the limbs off, then Caleb & I dug up the roots (back braking work!).